On Monday night, Columbus Blue Jackets GM Jarmo Kekalainen was in Pittsburgh for a Penguins-Lightning game. By Tuesday morning, the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review had speculated that Kekalainen could've been in town to discuss sending defenseman Jack Johnson to the Penguins. On Tuesday night, Kekalainen shot the whole thing down.

"It's silly. I don't usually respond to this kind of stuff, but this is just silly. I went to watch a game. (Pens GM) Ray Shero is a friend of mine," Kekalainen told the Columbus Dispatch.

Jack Johnson puts up points, but why the Penguins would want to trade for him is unclear. (AP Photo)

Shero shouldn't show any serious interest in Johnson, 26, who's essentially a power-play specialist signed for $4.36 million against the salary cap through 2018. (It's worth noting that Kekalainen inherited Johnson when he took the job last month. Kings GM Dean Lombardi signed Johnson before convincing ex-Blue Jackets general manager Scott Howson to take him as the principle return for Jeff Carter. Carter was a vital ingredient to the Kings' Stanley Cup victory.)

In any case, the Penguins want an elite defenseman, to both pair with Kris Letang and cover their bases should Letang, a potential Norris candidate whose salary could double from its current $3.5 million, leave after next season, according to the Tribune-Review. That's understandable.

Johnson, though, is far from elite. Splitting time with the Kings and Blue Jackets last season, he had 12 goals and 26 assists, with five and 12 coming on the power play, respectively. He was brutal at even strength, as has been the case throughout his career—his teams, as a rule, are significantly worse when he's on the ice against 5-on-5 competition.

Is that acceptable for a power-play specialist? Sure. But power-play specialists get hidden on third pairings. They don't play 25 minutes a game against top competition, and they certainly aren't signed to seven-year, $30.5 million contracts.

Furthermore, adding Johnson's contract to the books, particularly given its length, would make it tougher for Pittsburgh to re-sign Letang at all. Then, there's the issue of what Pittsburgh would have to send back to the Blue Jackets. The Tribune-Review suggested defenseman Simon Despres—a 2009 first-round pick who, in his first extended NHL action, has generally been good and often flashes elite ability. That'd be a lot to give up.

So, to recap: Jack Johnson is a one-dimensional player signed to a contract that, on its own, should be enough for the Penguins to pass, but they'd have to actually give up assets for the right to pay him a salary that could screw them up down the road. But hey, he's Sidney Crosby's friend, and these rumors have been flying around for seven-ish years, so who knows.